Muskox at Helsinki Zoo…

…enjoying a nice autumn day.

Actually it was a day that I would have called boringly grey only a few years ago. Then I used a camera only when I was travelling.

The Edge of the World…

…has been found in Helsinki. Centuries ago mariners were afraid of falling off the edge of the world – for a good reason it seems!

I guess this also explains why there are many “Maps of Europe” where Finland doesn’t exist at all or only small part of Southern Finland is included.

On the Road Again

September-October is the high season for the birds who are migrating to the south.

Zoo Lion vs. Crow

A lion hunting a crow at Korkeasaari zoo.

Click here to see a serie of photos from the chase.

Hietsu Beach Still Crowded in September

I expected to see an empty beach in September but it was really crowded! In addition to these branta leucopsis I also saw several homo sapiens. Most of the primates were walking but there were also two swimmers.

Two-Headed Veal

This two-headed veal from the 1930’s is one of the best known museum items in Finland. When the veal was “lost” a year ago, there was a lot of publicity about its fate at Natural History Musem. How can they lose their best-known item while the museum was closed for renovation?

While it was “lost”, I started to think that this is really more of a freakshow item than real natural history. On the other hand seeing something like that might help children to deal with disabilities and abnormalities much better.

Later the veal was “found” and it was placed in a dark corner of a temporary exhibition. I got the feeling that the museum didn’t want to keep it on display anymore.

No matter what you think of it, the veal has such a significance in Finnish culture that it really should be displayed on some important museum.

European Mink at Korkeasaari Zoo

European mink (vesikko in Finnish) practically disappeared from Finland in the 1950’s although some sightings have been made till 1992. In Europe it has not been able to compete with American minks that were brought here for fur farming.

I’ve visited Korkeasaari zoo many times and this was the first time I actually saw one. It was recently given something to eat so that might be the reason.

Night Swimming

Cross My Heart

Scene from Suomenlinna Sea Fortress